Viacom’s consumer products and live entertainment businesses have “significant room to grow” en route to generating $500-$600 million in annual revenue by 2020, Viacom CEO Robert Bakish told analysts. The Viacom business posted $280 million in revenue in the fiscal year ended Sept. 30 and is forecast to increase 25% to $350 million in the year ending in September 2018, Backish said.

The growth in consumer products will be driven by leveraging Viacom’s IP, including that tied to TV and film, “in a more structured way,” Backish said. In addition to its own business, Viacom will seek to represent third-party IP for consumer products as part of a move to “create substantial economies of scale for our partners and Viacom’s benefit,” Backish said.

The Live entertainment segment will be fueled new licensed recreation and theme parks and growth from other experiential ventures, including the opening next month of “The SpongeBob Musical” on Broadway, staged by licensee The Araca Group.

Meanwhile, Viacom’s Q4 net income rose 68.5% to $674 million from $274 million a year earlier when it incurred a $206 million restructuring charge.  Revenue rose 3% to $3.2 billion. Ancillary revenue rose 5% to $181 million led by sales of consumer products in international markets.

Contact:

Viacom, Wade Davis, Chief Financial Officer, 212-846-6700